Disclaimer: This story contains description of crime that some readers might find distressing. Please proceed with caution.
Anthony Floyd Wainwright was 54 when he was executed by lethal injection on June 10, 2025, at Florida State Prison. He was convicted for the brutal 1994 rape and murder of Carmen Gayheart, a 23-year-old nursing student and young mother.
The brutal crime that had shocked the nation over three decades ago. It finally reached its legal conclusion as Wainwright’s appeals were exhausted, and the victim’s family watched justice being delivered.
Wainwright and his accomplice, Richard Hamilton, were already serving a sentence in a North Carolina Prison. On April 27, 1994, they escaped and fled to Florida. In Lake City, they abducted Gayheart in broad daylight from a Winn-Dixie grocery store parking lot.
Court records reveal that she was forced into her vehicle and was sexually assaulted. These men then took her to a remote area where Wainwright tried to strangle her with show lace. When he failed, he ultimately shot her twice on the back of her head. Her body was later discovered in a wooded area.
In 1994, mother of two Carmen Gayheart was abducted, sexually assaulted and shot. Tonight, her murderer will be put to death. I spoke w/ Carmen’s sister about the past 31 years. I’ll have our conversation at 4pm on @WCJB20, before we both witness the execution. pic.twitter.com/mA5eLMWnUF
— Robert Bradfield (@RobertBReports) June 10, 2025
The pair were captured the next day in Mississippi following a violent shootout with police. Both of them were then convicted of first-degree murder, sexual assault, and armed robbery in 1995.
Wainwright was handed over a unanimous jury recommendation for the death penalty.
For the next 30 years, Wainwright’s legal team pursued multiple appeals. They challenged the conviction and death sentence. They made arguments that there was mishandling of the DNA evidence, the counsel was ineffective and also made claims that Wainwright suffered brain damage due to prenatal exposure to Agent Orange, which is a toxic herbicide used during the Vietnam War.
News Service of Florida: Florida inmate Anthony Wainwright is seeking to halt his execution scheduled for Tuesday [June 10] through a U.S. Supreme Court appeal filed June 6, citing cognitive damage from Agent Orange exposure before birth.https://t.co/7qZBHbA5ut pic.twitter.com/Tpc4YrGNoy
— The Florida Bar (@TheFlaBar) June 9, 2025
However, all these appeals were repeatedly rejected by the state and federal courts. Even the Supreme Court rejected his final petition just hours before his execution.
The execution process for Wainwright began at 6:10 p.m., and he was pronounced dead 12 minutes later, at 6:22 p.m. Family members of Carmen Gayheart, including her sister Maria David, were present for the execution.
This was the 6th execution for Florida in 2025. There has been a sharp uptick in the number of capital punishments across the state.
🚨 On Tuesday the Florida Supreme Court DENIED Anthony Floyd Wainwright a stay of execution.
Wainwright was convicted of the murder, robbery, kidnapping, and rape of Carmen Gayheart in 1994.
Wainwright will be on Tuesday June 10th.#Florida #TrueCrime #AnthonyWainwright pic.twitter.com/1RiX5DnI5U
— Krystal in Florida 🇺🇸 🐊 (@MsBradsher) June 4, 2025
Coincidentally, Wainwright’s execution took place just minutes before another death row inmate was put to death in Alabama. He was executed using nitrogen gas, which is a relatively new and controversial method of execution.
Gregory Hunt, 65, died by inhaling pure nitrogen gas at William C. Holman Correctional Facility in Atmore. It’s the only prison in Alabama with an execution chamber. Hunt was the state’s fifth nitrogen execution. His execution was Alabama’s third overall this year. pic.twitter.com/d9HYpxXNPq
— AL.com (@aldotcom) June 11, 2025
The Wainwright case has reignited debate about the death penalty in America. Supporters argue it serves justice in the most heinous of crimes. However, opponents cite that there are decades-long appeals processes that are mental torture in themselves. They also said that there could be potential miscarriages of justice.
In Wainwright’s case, the courts found the evidence against him overwhelming, and the defense’s arguments were unpersuasive and absurd at times.
As the nation continues to wrestle with the ethics of capital punishment, the Wainwright case stands as a reminder of the long road to justice and the lives forever changed along the way.
